Uber is taking action against difficult riders in Australia and New Zealand, according to a new report.
The car-sharing service told the BBC recently that it will begin banning riders who have ratings that are four-out-of-five-stars or lower. The bans will last six months. The program is modeled after the same move the company made in Brazil earlier this year.
According to the report, Uber doesn’t anticipate many of its riders being banned. It told the BBC that more than 90% of its riders have a rating of 4.5 or higher. And even before it starts banning riders, Uber will issue them warnings. If after those warnings, riders continue their poor behavior, they’ll be banned.
Uber’s move is an attempt by the company to improve the driver-rider relationship on its service. The rating systems, which apply to both drivers and riders, aim at helping people identify who they can trust and will have a good ride with and who they will not. Adding a six-month ban to the service could change some poor behavior. The ban could also improve how riders treat drivers.
According to the BBC report, the new policy will begin on Sept. 19. Poorly rated riders will receive warnings starting that day and could face bans at any point thereafter.
Uber did not immediately respond to a Coins2Day request for comment on the BBC report.